book iii

. chap. xvii.

[407] From a review of A German Staff Officer in India, written by Sir Evelyn Wood in the Saturday Review, 5th February 1910.

[408] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Vaishnava. The notice, as stated, refers only to the lowest section of Bairagis.

[409] Memoir of Central India.

[410] Tribes and Castes of the N.-W. P., art. Katwa.

[411] Temple and Fallon's Hindustani Proverbs.

[412] Perhaps a leather strap or belt.

[413] A revolution or circuit.

[414] A thousand.

[415] The third Baisakh (June).

[416] Butea frondosa.

[417] A description of the ceremony is given in the article on Kurmi.

[418] This article is based almost entirely on a monograph contributed by Mr. Hira Lal.

[419] Ethnology, p. 158.

[420] Fruit of the egg-plant.

[421] Ethnology, pp. 136, 137.

[422] Jungle Life in India, pp. 315, 316.

[423] This article is based partly on papers by Munshi Kanhya Lal of the Gazetteer office, Mr. Sundar Lal, Extra Assistant Commissioner, Saugor, and Mr. J. N. Sil, Pleader, Seoni.

[424] Hindus of Gujarat, p. 59, quoting from Ind. Ant. vi. 192-193.

[425] Hindu Castes and Sects, p. 175.

[426] Eastern India, i. p. 162.

[427] Ibidem, ii. p. 466.

[428] Ibidem, ii. p. 736.

[429] Ibidem, ii. p. 122.

[430] Essays, vol. ii. p. 182.

[431] Ethnology of Bengal, pp. 312, 313.

[432] United Provinces Census Report (1901), pp. 222-223.

[433] Lala Jwala Prasad, Extra Assistant Commissioner, in Sir E. A. Maclagan's Punjab Census Report for 1891.

[434] Memoir of Central India, vol. ii. pp. 165-166.

[435] The Kanungo maintains the statistical registers of land-revenue, rent, cultivation, cropping, etc., for the District as a whole which are compiled from those prepared by the patwaris for each village.

[436] Hindus of Gujarat, p. 60.

[437] Ibidem, p. 64.

[438] Ibidem, p. 61.

[439] Bhattacharya, Hindu Castes and Sects, p. 177. It is true that Dr. Bhattacharya states that the Kayasths were also largely employed under the Hindu kings of Bengal, but he gives no authority for this. The Gaur Kayasths also claim that the Sena kings of Bengal were of their caste, but considering that these kings were looked on as spiritual heads of the country and one of them laid down rules for the structure and intermarriage of the Brahman caste, it is practically impossible that they could have been Kayasths. The Muhammadan conquest of Bengal took place at an early period, and very little detail is known about the preceding Hindu dynasties.

[440] Risley, Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Bihar Kayasth.

[441] Sherring, Tribes and Castes, vol. iii. pp. 253-254.

[442] Bhattacharya, Hindu Castes and Tribes, p. 177.

[443] Hindus of Gujarat, p. 81.

[444] Ibidem, p. 67.

[445] Ibidem, p. 68, and Mackintosh, Report in the Ramosis, India Office Tracts, p. 77.

[446] Hobson-Jobson, s.v. Cranny.

[447] Hobson-Jobson, p. 167.

[448] Memoir of Central India, loc. cit.

[449] Hindus of Gujarat, p. 60.

[450] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Bengal Kayasth. The Kayasths deny the story that the five Kayasths were servants of the five Brahmans, and say that they were Kshatriyas sent on a mission from the king of Kanauj to the king of Bengal. This, however, is improbable in view of the evidence already given as to the historical status of the Kayasths.

[451] Tribes and Castes, ibidem.

[452] Hindu Castes and Sects, p. 155.

[453] Ibidem, pp. 375, 380.

[454] See articles on Ghasia and Dhobi.

[455] Village Communities, p. 125.

[456] Hindu Castes and Sects, ibidem, p. 177.

[457] Tribes and Castes, art. Kayasth.

[458] Bhattacharya, loc. cit., p. 188.

[459] Hindus of Gujarat, p. 72.

[460] Dasrath and Kaushilya were the father and mother of Rama.

[461] These are the occupations of the Kayasths.

[462] Geography and Astronomy.

[463] Quoted from the Matsapuran in a criticism by Babu Krishna Nag Verma.

[464] This article is based on papers by Mr. Mahfuz Ali, tahsildar, Rajnand-gaon, Mr. Jowahir Singh, Settlement Superintendent, Sambalpur, and Mr. Aduram Chaudhri of the Gazetteer Office.

[465] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Kaibartta.

[466] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Kewat.

[467] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, ibidem.

[468] A curved stick carried across the shoulders, from which are suspended two panniers.

[469] This article is based on Mr. Crooke's and Colonel Dalton's accounts, and some notes taken by Mr. Hira Lal at Raigarh.

[470] Ethnology of Bengal, pp. 128, 129.

[471] Ibidem, pp. 209, 210.

[472] Tribes and Castes, art. Kharwar.

[473] Tribes and Castes of Bengal.

[474] From bhuj, an arm, and jangh, a thigh. These are Hindi words, and the whole story is obviously a Brahmanical legend. Balrai seems a corruption of Balaram, the brother of Krishna.

[475] Estate held on feudal tenure.

[476] Religion and Folklore of Northern India, vol. ii. p. 170.

[477] Crooke, Tribes and Castes.

[478] Saccharum spontaneum.

[479] Tribes and Castes, art. Birhor.

[480] The above instances are reproduced from Sir J. G. Frazer's Psyche's Task (London, 1909). These cases are all of homicide, but it seems likely that the action of the Khairwars may be based on the same motives, as the fear of ghosts is strong among these tribes.

[481] Risley, loc. cit.

[482] Ethnology of Bengal, pp. 128, 129.

[483] Crooke's Tribes and Castes, art. Khairwa. Quoting from Bombay Gazetteer, x. 48 and iii. 310.

[484] Loc. cit.

[485] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Khandait. In 1911, after the transfer of Sambalpur, only 18 Khandaits remained in the Central Provinces.

[486] The following particulars are from a paper by Mr. Kashinath Bohidar, Assistant Settlement Superintendent, Sonpur.

[487] Compiled principally from a paper by Kanhya Lal, clerk in the Gazetteer Office.

[488] Carthamus tinctorius.

[489] In the Ethnographic Appendices to the India Census Report of 1901 a slightly different version of the story is given by Captain Luard. The Dangis, it must be remembered, are a high caste ranking just below Rajputs.

[490] This article is mainly based on notes taken by Rai Bahadur Hira Lal at Raigarh, with extracts from Colonel Dalton's and Sir H. Risley's accounts of the tribe.

[491] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Kharia.

[492] Saccharum spontaneum. This grass infests cultivated fields and is very difficult to eradicate.

[493] Melia indica.

[494] Ethnology of Bengal.

[495] Jungle Life in India, p. 89.

[496] Linguistic Survey, vol. iv. Munda and Dravidian Languages, p. 22.

[497] Ibidem, p. 129.

[498] Mr. Crooke's Tribes and Castes, art. Khatik.

[499] Census Report (1881), para. 502.

[500] This statement does not apply to the Chamars of the Central Provinces.

[501] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Khatik.

[502] Bombay Gazetteer, Hindus of Gujarat, pp. 55, 56.

[503] Tribes and Castes, art. Khatri.

[504] Bombay Gazetteer, Hindus of Gujarat, p. 55.

[505] Bombay Gazetteer, Hindus of Gujarat, p. 189.

[506] Ibidem, pp. 58, 59.

[507] Hindus of Gujarat, pp. 58, 59.

[508] This article consists mainly of extracts from Mr. F. L. Faridi's full account of the Khojahs in the Bombay Gazetteer, Muhammadans of Gujarat.

[509] Kandh is the Uriya spelling, and Kond or Khond that of the Telugus.

[510] Linguistic Survey of India.

[511] Narsingha means a man-lion and is one of Vishnu's incarnations; this subsept would seem, therefore, to have been formed since the Khonds adopted Hinduism.

[512] In Orissa, however, relationship through females is a bar to marriage, as recorded in Sir H. Risley's article.

[513] Report on the Khonds, p. 56.

[514] Report, p. 59.

[515] Sir H. Risley notes that the elephant represented the earth-goddess herself, who was here conceived in elephant form. In the hill tracts of Gumsur she was represented in peacock form, and the post to which the victim was bound bore the effigy of a peacock. Macpherson also records that when the Khonds attacked the victim they shouted, 'No sin rests on us; we have bought you with a price.'

[516] Golden Bough, 2nd ed. vol. ii. p. 241 sq.

[517] Pages 517-519. Published 1906.

[518] Journal, A. S. of Bengal, 1898.

[519] Sir G. A. Grierson's Linguistic Survey, Munda and Dravidian Languages.

[520] This article is compiled principally from a paper by Pandit Sakharam, Revenue Inspector, Hoshangabad District.

[521] Tod's Rajasthan, vol. ii. p. 327.

[522] Elliott's Hoshangabad Settlement Report, p. 60.

[523] Compiled from papers by Mr. Mulchand, Deputy Inspector of Schools, Betul; Mr. Shams-ul-Husain, Tahsildar, Sohagpur; Mr. Kalyan Chand, Manager, Court of Wards, Betul; and Kanhya Lal, clerk in the Gazetteer Office.

[524] Hoshangabad Settlement Report (1867), p. 60.

[525] History of the Sikhs, p. 15, footnote.

[526] Ibbetson's Census Report (1881), p. 297.

[527] Nagpur Settlement Report, p. 24.

[528] Mr. Lawrence's Bhandara Settlement Report (1867), p. 46.

[529] Bombay Gazetteer, Satara, p. 106.

[530] See article on Kunbi.

[531] Bhandara District Gazetteer, para. 90.

[532] Bhandara Settlement Report.

[533] Ibidem.

[534] Subordinate revenue officer.

[535] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Bhumij.

[536] The Mundas and their Country, p. 400.

[537] Linguistic Survey, Munda and Dravidian Languages, vol. vi. p. 7.

[538] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Munda.

[539] Tribes and Castes of Bengal, p. 15.

[540] Introduction to The Mundas and their Country, p. 9.

[541] Introduction to The Mundas and their Country, p. 9.

[542] Garha is six miles from Jubbulpore.

[543] The Mundas and their Country, p. 124.

[544] Rasmala, i. p. 113.

[545] Two baskets slung from a stick across the shoulders.

[546] Dalton, Ethnology of Bengal, p. 166.

[547] Dalton, p. 152.

[548] November, January and February.

[549] Tribes and Castes, art. Munda.

[550] Thuiya, Bhuiya is a mere jingle.

[551] J.A.S.B., No. 1 of 1903, p. 31.

[552] Dalton, ibidem.

[553] Mr. B. C. Mazumdar's Monograph.

[554] Roy, ibidem, p. 428.

[555] The Mundas and their Country, p. 121.

[556] Linguistic Survey, vol. iv., Munda and Dravidian Languages, p. 27.

[557] This article includes some extracts from notes made by Colonel Mackenzie when Commissioner of Berar, and subsequently published in the Pioneer newspaper; and information collected for the District Gazetteers in Yeotmal and Wardha.

[558] Papers relating to the Aboriginal Tribes of the Central Provinces, p. 10.

[559] Ibidem, Editor's Note.

[560] Linguistic Survey, vol. iv., Munda and Dravidian Languages, p. 561.

[561] India Census Report (1901), p. 287.

[562] Hunter's Imperial Gazetteer, art. Kolamallai hills.

[563] Based partly on papers by Mr. Bihari Lal, Naib-Tahsildar, Bilaspur, and Mr. Aduram Chaudhri of the Gazetteer Office.

[564] For further information the articles on Sansia and Beria may be consulted.

[565] Andropagon Schoenanthus.

[566] Gunthorpe, loc. cit.

[567] Ibidem, p. 49.

[568] Kitts, loc. cit.

[569] Ind. Ant. iii. p. 185, Satara Gazetteer, p. 119.

[570] Lyall's Berar Gazetteer, pp. 103-5.

[571] Kathiawar Gazetteer, p. 140.

[572] Crooke's edition of Hobson-Jobson, art. Koli.

[573] Bombay City Census Report (1901) (Edwards).

[574] Gujarat Gazetteer, p. 238.

[575] Golden Book of India, s.v.

[576] Semecarpus anacardium, the marking-nut tree.

[577] Kitts, Berar Census Report (1881), p. 131.

[578] Akola Gazetteer (Mr. C. Brown), p. 116.

[579] P. 197.

[580] Hindus of Gujarat, l.c.

[581] Indian Antiquary, vol. iii. p. 236.

[582] Bombay Gazetteer, Hindus of Gujarat, p. 250.

[583] Indian Antiquary, vol. iii. p. 236.

[584] This article is largely compiled from an interesting paper submitted by Mr. Parmanand Tiwari, Extra Assistant Commissioner and Assistant Settlement Officer, Sambalpur.

[585] Phaseolus mungo.

[586] Madras Census Report (1901), p. 162.

[587] Mysore Ethnographic Survey, Komati caste (H. V. Nanjundayya).

[588] H. V. Nanjundayya, loc. cit.

[589] H. V. Nanjundayya, loc. cit.

[590] Tribes and Castes of the North-West Provinces, iii. 316.

[591] This article is largely based on a monograph contributed by Mr. H. R. Crosthwaite, Assistant Commissioner, Hoshangabad, and contains also extracts from a monograph by Mr. Ganga Prasad Khatri, Forest Divisional Officer, Betul, and from the description of the Korkus given by Mr. (Sir Charles) Elliott in the Hoshangabad Settlement Report (1867), and by Major Forsyth in the Nimar Settlement Report (1868-69).

[592] Risley's Tribes and Castes of Bengal, Appendix V.: Korwa.

[593] See also art. Kol.

[594] The local term for the god Siva.

[595] Bauhinia Vahlii.

[596] Bassia latifolia, Buchanania latifolia, Gmelina arborea and Sterculia urens.

[597] Nearly 3 1/2 tons.

[598] Paspalum scrobiculatum, Panicum psilopodium, Coix Lachryma, Eleusine coracana, Saccharum officianarum, Setaria italica, Oryza sativa.

[599] Eugenia jambolana.

[600] Makyatotha, Jondhratotha, Dharsiima, Changri, Lobo, Khambi, Dagde, Kullya, Bursuma and Killibhasam.

[601] Zizyphus jujuba.

[602] The tiger-god.

[603] The above passage is taken from Mr. (Sir Charles) Elliott's Hoshangabad Settlement Report written in 1867. Since that time the belief in the magical powers of the Bhumka has somewhat declined.

[604] A small measure for grain.

[605] Most of the information in this paragraph is taken from Mr. Ganga Prasad Khatri's Report.

[606] Boswellia serrata.

[607] This article is based on Colonel Dalton's account of the tribe and on notes by Mr. N. T. Kunte, Jailor, Sarguja, and Mr. Narbad Dhanu Sao, Assistant Manager, Uprora.

[608] Ethnology of Bengal, p. 221.

[609] Shorea robusta.

[610] Dalton, loc. cit. p. 229.

[611] Ethnology of Bengal, p. 228.

[612] Ethnology of Bengal, pp. 228, 229.

[613] Bauhinia Vahlii.

[614] Believed to be some kind of vulture.

[615] This article is based on a good paper by Mr. Raghunath Waman Vaidya, schoolmaster, Hinganghat, and others by Mr. M. E. Hardas, Tahsildar, Umrer, and Messrs. Aduram Chaudhri and Pyare Lal Misra of the Gazetteer Office.

[616] V. Nanjundayya, Monograph on the Sale Caste (Mysore Ethnographical Survey).

[617] With this may be compared the tradition of the sweeper caste that winnowing fans and sieves were first made out of bones and sinews.

[618] Kitts, Berar Census Report (1881), p. 127.

[619] Bauhinia Rusa.

[620] Sir H. Risley's Tribes and Castes of Bengal, art. Tanti.